Moratorium on hog farms in Buffalo River watershed NORTH LITTLE ROCK (AP) — The Arkansas Pollution Control and Ecology Commission is to consider changing rules to ban big hog farms in the Buffalo River watershed. The panel has enacted a six-month moratorium on issuing new permits for large confined animal operations in the area of the Buffalo National River. That will give members time to decide whether to change the rules to block large animal operations. Commissioners issued an order that no...

Gov. Mike Beebe tours damaged homes FERNDALE (AP) — Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe visited several homes Tuesday that were damaged by a deadly twister, stopping at one location where three members of a family were killed. The state death toll from Sunday's tornado stands at 15, with three of those deaths — a father and two daughters — occurring at a central Arkansas home of 11 people at the border of Pulaski and Saline County. "It was kind of heartbreaking those two little girls that ...

No sense of victimhood in Arkansas twister towns MAYFLOWER (AP) — After Louie Short's home overlooking Lake Conway was reduced to rubble by a half-mile-wide tornado, he emerged from the debris with bruises, a cut arm and the resolve to stake another claim to the kind of life where neighbors help neighbors and the fishing is good. "We'll rebuild. That's the attitude of the people here," said Short, who moved to Mayflower 32 years ago from Little Rock for easy access to fishing and the outdoor...

Profiles of those killed by this week's tornadoes A 21-year-old member of the University of Alabama swim team taking shelter in the basement of a home was among those killed by tornadoes that swept across the Midwest and South this week. John Servati, a junior from Tupelo, Miss., was killed Monday night when a retaining wall collapsed, said Tuscaloosa city spokeswoman Deidre Stalnaker. Servati, a business major who made the dean's list, competed in three events at the Southeastern Conference ...

Court grants stay in voter ID ruling LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas' highest court on Tuesday temporarily stayed a judge's ruling striking down the state's new voter ID law, saying it wants arguments by the end of the week on whether the restriction should remain in place. The Supreme Court issued a two-page order granting the state's request to stay Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox's ruling last week voiding the new law requiring voters to show photo identification before casti...

No finding of laws broken in UA audit probeFAYETTEVILLE (AP) — A prosecutor's report developed at the request of a state legislator concludes that the top financial official at the University of Arkansas engaged in no wrongdoing in dealing with a $4 million deficit in the school's fundraising division. Deputy Prosecutor David Bercaw issued a letter to the House of Representatives on Tuesday that says Vice Chancellor Don Pederson didn't misrepresent any facts in addressing the Office of...

President Obama signs Arkansas disaster declarationToday, the President declared a major disaster in the State of Arkansas and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by severe storms, tornadoes, and flooding on Sunday. The President's action makes federal funding available to affected individuals in Faulkner County. Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses, and other ...

Red Cross opens emergency shelters in ArkansasLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — More than 200 people displaced by severe weather spent the night at six shelters operated or supported by the American Red Cross in Arkansas. The Red Cross opened two emergency shelters and is supporting four community shelters for residents displaced by tornadoes in three Arkansas counties. More than a dozen people died in tornadoes in Arkansas and Oklahoma on Sunday. The Red Cross has opened emergency shelters at St....

Obama pledges federal help after deadly tornadoMANILA, Philippines (AP) — President Barack Obama is sending his deepest condolences to those affected by a deadly tornado that ripped through Arkansas and has directed federal resources to the area. The White House said Obama is sending Craig Fugate, the Federal Emergency Management Agency administrator, to Arkansas "to ensure the appropriate federal resources are being brought to bear to support the state and local efforts." Obama telephoned...

100-plus patients treated after Arkansas tornadoCONWAY, Ark. (AP) — The closest hospital to the deadly tornado that struck central Arkansas says it's treated about 100 patients for storm-related injuries. Conway Regional Medical Center said Monday morning that nine of those patients were admitted to the hospital and another 10 people were transferred to hospitals in Little Rock. Conway is in between the cities of Mayflower and Vilonia, where a massive tornado caused widespread damage Sunday...

A look at storm shelters and tornadoesMore than a dozen people were killed when a powerful storm system rumbled across the Plains and into Arkansas. Typically, people killed during tornadoes die from blunt force trauma — either being struck by flying debris or being tossed in high winds. Following are some questions and guidance about underground basements and shelters and how people can prepare for tornadoes. Q: What is the best way to protect yourself during a tornado? A: Most f...

Official: Curfew for towns hit by tornadoLITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — A Faulkner County spokesman says a curfew is being put in place for two towns hit by a deadly tornado. Faulkner County spokesman David Hogue said a curfew will be enforced starting Monday night at 7 p.m. and ending at 7 a.m. Tuesday for Vilonia and Mayflower, two cities in the area hit hardest by a tornado that rolled through Arkansas on Sunday night. Hogue said non-emergency personnel who do not live in the area will ...

Attorney General McDaniel warns of scams following tornado MAYFLOWER, Ark. (AP) — Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel says his office will be on the lookout for fraud following Sunday's deadly storms in Arkansas. McDaniel says he expects to see scams emerge on services including yard cleanup, reconstruction and tree-trimming, as well as disaster relief. He says state law requires that most charitable organizations register with his office prior to soliciting donations. McDaniel says people shoul...

Red Cross opens emergency shelters in Arkansas LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — More than 200 people displaced by severe weather spent the night at six shelters operated or supported by the American Red Cross in Arkansas. The Red Cross opened two emergency shelters and is supporting four community shelters for residents displaced by tornadoes in three Arkansas counties. More than a dozen people died in tornadoes in Arkansas and Oklahoma on Sunday. The Red Cross has opened emergency shelters at St....

Arkansans rush for cover against twister; 15 die VILONIA, Ark. (AP) — The sky turned black as the funnel cloud closed in, and Maggie Caro rushed with her husband and two children to a community shelter at a Vilonia school, where they were among the last to get inside the fortified gym before the doors were shut. "They were screaming, 'Run! Run! It's coming!'" Caro recalled. And then all hell broke loose. The half-mile-wide tornado carved an 80-mile path of destruction through the Little Rock...

Tornadoes strike central, southern US, killing 9MAYFLOWER, Ark. (AP) — A powerful storm system rumbled through the central and southern United States on Sunday, spawning a massive tornado that killed at least eight people in central Arkansas and another that killed someone in Oklahoma. The Arkansas tornado touched down about 10 miles west of Little Rock at around 7 p.m. and moved northeastward for at least 30 miles, the National Weather Service reported. It missed the state capital but pass...

1 dies from gunshot wound in Little Rock LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Little Rock police say a man has died from a gunshot wound. Police spokesman Lt. Sidney Allen says officers were called to the scene shortly after 2 p.m. Saturday and found a man lying in the street with at least one gunshot wound to his torso. Emergency workers and firefighters performed lifesaving techniques, but the man died later a hospital. His name and age have not been released. A suspect is not in custody.

Panel approves steel mill air permit NORTH LITTLE ROCK (AP) — A planned $1.2 billion steel mill planned for northeast Arkansas cleared an important hurdle Friday with a state regulatory panel's approval of its air quality permit. Big River Steel had a lengthy fight for the permit for the Osceola plant, with a competitor, Nucor Steel in Blytheville, filing multiple objections along the way. Blytheville and Osceola are both in Mississippi County. John Correnti, chief executive offi...

AG files notice of appeal in ID case LITTLE ROCK (AP) — Arkansas' attorney general told a state judge on Friday he plans to appeal a decision that struck down a new voter ID law, while a civil liberties group said it will move forward with a separate challenge to the requirement. Attorney General Dustin McDaniel's office filed a notice of appeal over Pulaski County Judge Tim Fox's ruling a day earlier that voided a new law requiring voters to show photo identification before cast...